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Social Justice in Museums!

  • 1.  Social Justice in Museums!

    Posted 04-24-2018 11:29 AM
    Hi everyone! I'm making a list of recent (last 5 years) research, articles, or initiatives on social justice or diversity/inclusion within museums. Not necessarily just race, but accessibility and initiatives assisting the inclusion of the differently-abled (deaf, blind, etc.), those with autism, LGBTQ, language-minority populations, immigrants, etc.

    I'm combing other websites & search engines, but if your museum did something great with any of these initiatives I'd love to hear about it!

    Thanks!

    ------------------------------
    Mariah Flanagan
    Evaluation Coordinator
    Conner Prairie
    Fishers, IN
    ------------------------------
    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 2.  RE: Social Justice in Museums!

    Posted 04-25-2018 07:26 AM
    Have a look at the resources on these websites: Federation of International Human Rights Museums - www.fihrm.org and Social Justice Alliance of Museums - sjam.org.

    There are some really interesting examples of work from a number of different countries.

    ------------------------------
    Francoise McClafferty
    Policy and International Relations Officer
    Liverpool
    ------------------------------

    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 3.  RE: Social Justice in Museums!

    Posted 04-25-2018 08:19 AM
    My dissertation focuses on language access and inclusion to non English speaking audiences.

    Language, Community, and Translations: An Analysis of Current Multilingual Exhibition Practices among Art Museums in New York City

    You can find my research at:

    https://pqdtopen.proquest.com/doc/1775526931.html?FMT=ABS

    Best,
    Raul Manzano, Ph.D.
    www.raul-manzano.com

    ------------------------------
    Raul Manzano
    New York NY
    ------------------------------

    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 4.  RE: Social Justice in Museums!

    Posted 04-25-2018 08:36 AM

    Please share your list after you compile it. I'm sure others besides me would love to see it!

     

    Robyn Gibboney, PhD, GPC

    Cincinnati Museum Center

    Director of Grants

    Philanthropy Department

    rgibboney@cincymuseum.org

    office (513) 287-7058

    mobile (901) 351-1053

    fax (513) 287-7079

    cincymuseum.org

    Find us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube

     

    Union Terminal

    1301 Western Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio 45203 

     

    Location during restoration:

    250 West Court Street, Suite 300 East, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202

     

     




    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 5.  RE: Social Justice in Museums!

    Posted 04-25-2018 11:21 AM
    My book, Exhibitions for Social Justice will be coming out from Routledge's Museum Meanings series at the very end of the year or else early in 2019. Meanwhile, my dissertation showcases some museums in Chicago doing this type of work. You can find that and other projects of mine on my website: elenagonzales.org

    Also, I would encourage you to check out:
    Incluseum
    Brown Girls Museum Blog
    LaTanya Autrey's resources on ArtStuffMatters (https://artstuffmatters.wordpress.com/about/)
    The Empathetic Museum
    MASS Action

    So excited about everyone getting into this conversation!
    My best,
    Elena


    ------------------------------
    Elena Gonzales
    Independent Scholar, Curator
    @curatoriologist
    ------------------------------

    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 6.  RE: Social Justice in Museums!

    Posted 04-25-2018 10:58 AM
    We are working with the Baltimore Museum of Art as it turns its vision and mission towards inclusion and social justice.  The Mark Bradford/Greenmount West project is exemplary, as is the Whitten exhibition currently on view...Sully

    ------------------------------
    Robert Sullivan
    Partner
    Washington DC
    ------------------------------

    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 7.  RE: Social Justice in Museums!

    Posted 04-25-2018 11:54 AM
    Hi Mariah. We have many LGBTQ+ programs at The Andy Warhol Museum. See here: https://www.warhol.org/lgbtq/. We're also finished redesigning our website a few months ago, and it is now 100% accessible. Check out our accessibility page for more info on all we have to offer, including Sensory Friendly experiences: https://www.warhol.org/accessibility-accommodations/

    In addition to that, we offer Out Loud, which is our inclusive audio app. Out Loud is designed to be inclusive of users across abilities. For users who are blind or have low vision, the app is screen reader-optimized and offers enlargeable text. The app also offers in-depth visual descriptions of Warhol artworks. The app is available for download on iOS devices from the App Store and there are iOS devices available for free to use while at the museum for visitors. We have also installed over a dozen tactile repoductions of selected works from our collection that tell the story of Andy Warhol's life and his expansive artistic practice through touch. You can read more about our new website, Out Loud app, and tactile reproductions on our press site here: https://press.warhol.org/press/the-warhol-expands-award-winning-technology-based-accessibility-initiatives/.

    We also had a project called "Activist Print", which was a collaboration between The Warhol, BOOM Concepts (a creative hub for artists to incubate ideas), and the printmaking studio Artists Image Resource (AIR). "Activist Print" was inspired by the history of artists using silkscreen and print-based media to raise awareness of contemporary issues and inspire change. Read more about that here: https://www.warhol.org/series/activist-print/.

    Hope this helps. Can you please also share your list with me once finished? My email is bidulac@warhol.org. Thanks.

    ------------------------------
    Charlene Bidula
    Communications Manager
    Andy Warhol Museum
    Pittsburgh PA
    ------------------------------

    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 8.  RE: Social Justice in Museums!

    Posted 04-25-2018 07:05 PM
    I highly recommend the wonderful work that Arts Access Aotearoa does here in New Zealand. They work with art galleries, museums, creative spaces, prisons, theatre groups etc to promote inclusion and build capacity at a local level through training, coaching and local networks. The Arts for All guide is excellent and this page has a list of other resources.

    ------------------------------
    Phillipa Tocker
    Executive Director
    Museums Aotearoa
    Wellington
    ------------------------------

    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 9.  RE: Social Justice in Museums!

    Posted 04-26-2018 09:00 AM
    I'm sure this is already on your list, but everyone may want to know about MASS Action, a project growing out of social justice discussions fieldwide, at conferences, and online. It focuses on growing a network of social-justice-informed practitioners and developing resources for bringing these ideas into work in museum institutions. The online Toolkit is free of charge and excellent, and the "Resources" page also includes links to projects, essays, and learning resources. 
    Home
    MASS Action remove preview
    Home
    This collaborative project seeks to align museums with more equitable and inclusive practices. As the museum field begins to shape its identity in the 21st century, MASS Action poses the following questions for practitioners to consider: What is the role and responsibility of the museum in responding to issues affecting our communities locally and globally?
    View this on MASS Action >


    ------------------------------
    Michelle Moon
    Director of Interpretation and Program Evaluation
    The Newark Museum
    Newark NJ
    ------------------------------

    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 10.  RE: Social Justice in Museums!

    Posted 04-26-2018 09:06 AM
    And one more resource: LaTanya Autry led a 2015 effort to compile a "Social Justice & Museums Resource List," online at Google Drive. I believe it is still growing, but if/when you do make the list public, it would be great to coordinate with her and others who have been paving the way in sharing this information broadly. 

    SOCIAL JUSTICE & MUSEUMS RESOURCE LIST
    Google Docs remove preview
    SOCIAL JUSTICE & MUSEUMS RESOURCE LIST
    SOCIAL JUSTICE & MUSEUMS RESOURCE LIST initiated by La Tanya S. Autry, @artstuffmatters, July 2015 A successful framework for museums dealing w[ith] race relations doesn't exist. We have to imagine and activate it. - Aleia Brown, #Museumsrespondtoferguson, tweet July 11, 2015 @aleiabrown * ADD ...
    View this on Google Docs >


    ------------------------------
    Michelle Moon
    Director of Interpretation and Program Evaluation
    The Newark Museum
    Newark NJ
    ------------------------------

    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 11.  RE: Social Justice in Museums!

    Posted 04-26-2018 12:02 PM
    Hi Mariah,
    Here are a few items that might be of interest to you!

    • Next Practices in Diversity and Inclusion highlights programs or initiatives from 51 different art museums (attached)


    • Next Practices in Partnerships is not exclusively focused on DEAI initiatives but does have some programs you might find interesting, particularly from Pérez Art Museum Miami (attached)


    • The Mellon Foundation funded case studies of 8 AAMD museums that are making strides in this area. Four of them are available now: 
    Case Studies in Museum Diversity
    ITHAKA S+R remove preview
    Case Studies in Museum Diversity
    Three years ago, Ithaka S+R, The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD), and the American Alliance of Museums (AAM) set out to quantify with demographic data an issue that has been of increasing concern within and beyond the arts community: the lack of representative diversity in professional museum roles.
    View this on ITHAKA S+R >
     

    • The Mississippi Museum of Art has an Arts and Civil Rights initiative with Tougaloo College: 
    https://www.museumcape.org/art-civil-rights

    ------------------------------
    Alison Wade
    Chief Administrator
    Association of Art Museum Directors
    New York NY
    aamd.org
    ------------------------------

    Attachment(s)

    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 12.  RE: Social Justice in Museums!

    Posted 04-26-2018 01:40 PM
    Hello
    This is a great conversation and resource stream. Thank you everyone for sharing what you are doing and resources as well. If you are attending AAM in Phoenix, may I also recommend the following sessions that highlight the work of several museums doing work in community engagement and social justice.
    • The Role of the Community Engagement Curator

      Monday, May 7
      1:45 PM - 3:00 PM
      Location: 229 AB


      Building Capacity Through Social Justice: Lessons from Children's Museums

      Wednesday, May 9
      11:45 AM - 1:00 PM
      Location: 227 ABC

      .

        Thanks,
        Sandra


      ------------------------------
      Sandra Bonnici
      Associate Director of Education, Diversity and Inclusion
      Madison Children's Museum
      Madison WI
      ------------------------------

      AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


    • 13.  RE: Social Justice in Museums!

      Posted 04-26-2018 04:56 PM
      Hi Mariah,

      To broaden the scope of your great inquiry, might you consider including Museums and Climate Justice? So much of the impact of climate change is on those who are the least able to be resilient and who have the least power. The recently released video, "Museums and the Climate Challenge," addresses how museums might respond to these realities. Museums and the Climate Challenge
      YouTube remove preview
      Museums and the Climate Challenge
      This video - a partnership between the Alberta Museums Association (AMA), the Coalition of Museums for Climate Justice (CMCJ), and Shadow Light Production - is the first in a three-part series that will raise awareness of this vital issue and support the global museum community in taking an active role in the fight against climate change.
      View this on YouTube >



      ------------------------------
      M. Christine Castle PhD
      Advisory Group Member, Coalition of Museums for Climate Justice
      Canada
      https://coalitionofmuseumsforclimatejustice.wordpress.com/
      ------------------------------

      AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


    • 14.  RE: Social Justice in Museums!

      Posted 04-27-2018 09:29 AM
        |   view attached
      Hi Mariah,

      I wrote the attached "think piece" in 2014.  It is focused on the importance of diversity and inclusion in the approaches to science (and knowledge production more generally) that we see in museums:  "Only the Voice of the Other: Science, Power, and Diversity's Revolt in the Museum-- A Manifesto of Sorts" Museum Anthropology Review 8(1): 45-54

      There's also the group "The Natural History Museum:"  http://thenaturalhistorymuseum.org/

      Beka Economopolis is the co-founder and has been doing very interesting work: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bekamop

      I am also really looking forward to seeing your list and want to thank all the contributors.

      Regards,

      ------------------------------
      W. Warner Wood
      Associate Professor of Anthropology
      Museum Studies Graduate Certificate Program - University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee
      Milwaukee WI
      ------------------------------

      Attachment(s)

      pdf
      Wood - OnlyTheVoice.pdf   168 KB 1 version
      AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


    • 15.  RE: Social Justice in Museums!

      Posted 04-29-2018 10:49 PM
        |   view attached
      FINAL LIST (120+ resources).

      Let me send out a big thank you to everyone for the examples & resources! It should be incredibly reaffirming to all of us to know that many in this field truly care about the social justice effort of museums across the world.
      As some of you requested, here is the list I compiled.
      *DISCLAIMER* This is in no way an all-inclusive or specially-curated list of programs, initiatives, case studies, or articles available on the topic of diversity & inclusion. This is just what I've encountered over a couple days of research. Additionally, it's skewed towards certain issues. This is because my original goal was mostly to find intra-museum staff diversity & inclusion initiatives; still, in that quest, I did come across a ton of other resources, and they're all listed here too if you're curious.
      Have a great week!


      ------------------------------
      Mariah Flanagan
      Evaluation Coordinator
      Conner Prairie
      Fishers, IN
      ------------------------------

      Attachment(s)

      AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


    • 16.  RE: Social Justice in Museums!

      Posted 04-30-2018 10:41 AM
      Thank you so much for sharing your resources, Mariah!

      Elena

      ------------------------------
      Elena Gonzales
      @curatoriologist
      Independent Scholar, Curator
      ------------------------------

      AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more